Martial cultivation out of spite
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The female servers were fawning over the foreign man eating at their diner. He had an interesting and rather handsome face; his dusky plump skin could put any fair woman to shame, yet well defined and well built curves snugged evidently at the thin fabric of his clothes. His eyes were exquisite, priceless emerald, like fresh leaves that just have begun to bloom in the spring—yet, it bore a gaze that were as deep as the ocean's abyss.
However, there was a blank unfathomable expression painted on his face. They couldn't tell whether the man's status was a commoner or a part of the nobility due to his humble clothing while his demeanor implied otherwise.
"Your Highness, the ladies have been staring at you. Should I tell them to stop?" His confidante, Kat, said.
He waved his hand dismissively, "Don't cause any scene. We're just here to fill our stomach, then we'll leave."
He was about to take another bite when he realized how Kat addressed him, "Kat, we've rehearsed repeatedly on how you must address me during our venture, didn't we?"
Kat nodded, "Yes, I apologize, Sir Eloi."
Her black bushy tail wagged lightly, as a small smile formed on her lips.
Seeing the man's half-beast companion, the ladies on the counter figured that the man must be a part of the nobility, causing the them to swoon more for this mysterious man. Why did a noble man like him bothered eating at such a small diner?
Half-beasts, or hybrids, were an indirect implication of someone's wealth and power. Being able to own one shows that you are powerful enough to subdue them, and can afford to feed and shelter them.
Moreover, hybrids have innate explosive strength and soul energy that can amplify their master's cultivation.
But the truth was, hybrids were treated just as bad as pet slaves. They neither belong as humans and neither as beasts in the Devil's belt, receiving such hostility from both sides. Even with their noteworthy strength, in the end, that's all they were—a mere symbol of power and status.
Kat, the hybrid, adoringly observed her master as he ate. A warm feeling spread to her chest as she saw that he had grown up well.
She had been on his side ever since he was born. And even though Eloi grew up as a royalty, he never once mistreated Kat nor regarded her as a mere servant.
They proceed to eat in silence when suddenly, a bowl of noodle soup suddenly flew in mid air, landing perfectly on a bald man's head on the other table.
Eloi tried to remain cool and composed as he choked, coughing his urge to laugh upon seeing the situation.
The bald man appeared to be in his mid-age, had a buff build and visible scars on his arms and face. His head stuck out like a sore thumb among the crowd as he effortlessly lifted a smaller man by his collar and shook him like a soft doll.
The two seemed to negotiate for a short while before the bald man screamed, "You can pay for inconvenience through my fist!"
Thwack!
The people gasped at the loud crisp whack that reverberated the four corners of the diner.
"Serves you right, you one-eyed prick," the bald man grunted.
The younger man spat out blood. His cheeks instantly turned red at the impact. He was certain that that injury would bruise his face badly.
Due to the young man's disadvantage at size, Eloi was about to sprung up in action to mitigate the trouble from getting bigger. But, the young man stood up and retaliated.
"My father doesn't even hit me, you fucking... thug!"
CRASH!
The people at the diner were left gaping to the floor. Their brains didn't seem able to process at what just occurred.
In a flourish motion, Vera jabbed his throat consecutively followed by jumping to the bald man's shoulders. Before he could recover, Vera had already wrapped her thighs behind the man's head and lifted him backwards mid-air. He plummeted the hard ground directly head first. Vera rolled him with a kick, awfully skidding the coarse road outside the diner.
People gasped as traces of blood wetted the ground. They caught a clear glimpse of the young man's face.
Contrast to Vera's unruly disguise, her skin was rather fair and delicate with a prepossessing visage. Her false appearance and eyepatch weren't enough to conceal her pleasingly symmetrical features underneath; a pair of sublime slate upturned eyes, a slim nose, defined jaw and cheekbones that accentuated her beauty—a myriad of soft and sharp features crossing such indistinctive line between femininity and masculinity.
Eloi found himself drawn towards the young man's familiar face. Such pearless beauty like his was impossible not to remember. Then, he blinked. He must've gone nuts.
Why was he even staring at a man in the first place?
Apparently, the bald man whom Vera wrestled was his team's strongest member. His other comrades must had been aware that Vera was someone they couldn't beat even with their combined strength.
Dragging the fight further would at least cost a them few teeth and their humiliation. Hence, his team reluctantly stepped down and aid him, but it was for certain that Vera was already marked on their blacklist.
Murmurs swelled among the crowd as the several team members cooperatedly carry the unconscious man lying on the road.
Eloi refused to believe his eyes, witnessing how the bald man was heaved with great struggle by several men.
Then his gaze shift back to the young man. He had such a smaller figure, yet he flipped someone thrice his size.
What a terrifying combat prowess.
"Your Highness, this is the first time I've witnessed someone execute fatal aerial techniques. I highly suggest we recruit that man," Kat whispered to Eloi.
"En. However, we mustn't be blindly recruit someone just through his potential prowess."
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I wiped the blood on the corner of my mouth. My cheeks ached a sharp pain upon my touch, thankfully, my teeth were still intact. My ability to take a hit after years of being pummeled in the military while surviving an apocalypse was never an easy feat to boot.
However, before I could even reach the counter to order a bowl of noodle soup, my knees and ankles suddenly weakened, adrenaline washing away my remaining strength.
Unbeknownst the crowd, using that sudden burst of force against a huge opponent depleted my strength substantially.
My current body was naturally lean, however it wasn't enduring enough to sustain and execute the martial techniques I knew from my past life.
Madeleine, Genevieve and I grew up forbidden from any weapons and training martial arts, as it was simply not the world that our father wanted for us. We were like his priceless artifacts, precious yet always kept under constant surveillance; hence, one mischievous act and the word would travel fast—after which we'd be left to reflect, confined within the small four corners of our chambers.
Within those time spent on my chamber, I immersed myself on inner alchemy as an outlet of frustration from our overprotective father—strengthening my body in secret through by means of cultivating my life force and still meditation.
As I had frequently visited our clan's archive, I read a quite a few books about the system in this world.
There were twofold approach in cultivation; external and internal alchemy. External includes movements and concocted herbs, while internal includes stillness and gathering life force.
Although, I tried to practice external alchemy, our physical activities at home were simply limited to sewing, sweeping, cooking, and washing clothes at most.
Hence, I had to rely on my basic knowledge in medicine to gain in-depth understanding of the unfamiliar herbs in this world, and consumed it to further strengthen my body by external alchemy.
I engrossed myself in cultivation so much that I developed a fountain of life force. Just by mere focusing on my breathing method, my strength and energy can quickly regulate back to normal. This somehow compensated my current feeble body.
And thus after a decade of cultivation, I had accumulated and established a strong foundation, but my body strengthening was still hollow and incomplete making it impossible for me to breakthrough.